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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · object · plane · mine · prune · snap · bulb · chest

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. snap — to click
  5. object — to protest
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. capital — money
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mine — for digging
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — an aim
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. prune — to trim
  19. plane — a tool
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. bulb — for light
  22. capital — a city
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bulb — for light

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com